The present invention generally relates to methods and machines for cutting solid and semisolid materials, including food products.
The Affinity® dicer is a size-reduction machine manufactured by Urschel Laboratories, Inc., and is particularly well suited for dicing various materials, notable but nonlimiting examples of which include cheeses and meats. The Affinity® dicer is well known as capable of high capacity output and precision cuts. In addition, the Affinity® dicer has a sanitary design to deter bacterial growth.
A nonlimiting representation of an Affinity® size-reduction machine 10 is shown in FIG. 1. Product is delivered to the machine 10, for example, through a feed hopper (not shown), and enters a rotating impeller 12 through an axial opening 15 of the impeller 12. Within the impeller 12, centrifugal forces hold the product against an inner wall of a stationary case 14 equipped with a slicing knife 16. The slicing knife 16 is typically oriented approximately parallel to the generally horizontal rotational axis of the impeller 12, and is disposed in or adjacent an opening in the case 14 that defines an outlet of the impeller 12. Paddles 18 of the impeller 12 carry the product to the slicing knife 16, producing slices that enter a dicing unit of the machine. As used herein, the dicing unit comprises a part of the machine downstream of the knife 16 and generally includes a feed drum 20, feed roll 22, circular cutter 24, and cross-cutter 26, each of which individually rotates about its respective axis of rotation.
FIG. 2 represents an exploded view of the dicing unit of FIG. 1. Within the dicing unit, slices pass between the rotating feed drum 20 and feed roll 22, then enter the rotating circular cutter 24 whose axis of rotation is approximately parallel to the rotational axes of the impeller 12, rotating feed drum 20, and feed roll 22. The circular cutter 24 is equipped with disk-shaped knives (FIG. 2), each oriented approximately perpendicular to the rotational axis of the circular cutter 24 and, therefore, such that the knives cut each slice into multiple parallel strips. The strips pass directly into the rotating cross-cutter 26 whose axis of rotation is also approximately parallel to the rotational axis of the circular cutter 24. The cross-cutter 26 is equipped with rectilinear knives (FIG. 2), each oriented approximately parallel to the rotational axes of the cross-cutter 26, and therefore transverse and preferably perpendicular to the disk-shaped knives of the circular cutter 24, to produce final cross-cuts that yield a diced product. The rotational speed of the cross-cutter 26 is preferably independently controllable relative to the feed drum 20, feed roll 22, and circular cutter 24 so that the size of the diced product can be selected and controlled. As evident from FIG. 1, the rotational axes of the impeller 12, feed drum 20, feed roll 22, circular cutter 24, and cross-cutter 26 are all approximately horizontal and parallel to each other.
As represented in FIG. 2, each of the feed drum 20, feed roll 22, circular cutter 24, and cross-cutter 26 is configured to be individually coaxially mounted on a separate shaft or spindle. In the nonlimiting representation of FIG. 2, the feed drum 20 and cross-cutter 26 are shown as being individually mounted on separate spindle shafts 28 and 30, and are secured thereto with a retaining washer 40 and nut 42, and the feed roll 22 and circular cutter 24 are shown as being individually mounted on separate spindle shafts 44 and secured thereto with bolts 45. The feed drum 20, feed roll 22, circular cutter 24, and cross-cutter 26 are all shown as being cantilevered from a support structure 50 of the machine, for example, an enclosure, frame and/or other structures interconnected with the stationary case 14 and including drive systems operable to rotate the impeller 12, feed drum 20, feed roll 22, circular cutter 24, and cross-cutter 26 at the desired rotational speeds thereof.
FIG. 2 further represents a shear or stripper plate 32 supported and secured with bolts 36 to a support bar 34, which is represented in FIG. 2 as being cantilevered from the support structure 50, similar to the feed drum 20, feed roll 22, circular cutter 24, and cross-cutter 26. The stripper plate 32 has an upper shear edge 47 adapted to strip products (strips) from the circular cutter 24 prior to being diced with the cross-cutter 26. Slots 46 are defined in the stripper plate 32 facing the circular cutter 24, and the knives of the circular cutter 24 are partially received in the slots 46. The slots 46 extend to the shear edge 47, such that individual edges of the shear edge 47 between adjacent slots 46 protrude between adjacent knives of the circular cutter 24 to remove strips from therebetween. A lower shear edge 48 of the stripper plate 32 is in close proximity to the knives of the cross-cutter 26 to ensure complete dicing of the strips delivered from the circular cutter 24 to the cross-cutter 26. The slots 46 also extend through the thickness of the plate 32 to the base of the plate 32, such that an opening (not visible) is defined at the lower extent of each slot 46. The width of each slot 46 is sufficient to accommodate the axial thickness of one knife of the circular cutter 24 received therein and provide a clearance therebetween. The slots 46 also define parallel walls that separate adjacent knives of the circular cutter 24 from each other.
While completely well suited for many food processing applications, including cheeses for which the Affinity® is widely used, there is an ongoing desire for greater productivity and versatility in machines of this type.